General

Canada and Jordan on Wednesday officially launched negotiations toward a free trade agreement (FTA) that could boost ag trade between the two countries. A first full round of negotiations between the two nations is planned for April in Amman, Jordan, the federal government said in a release Wednesday. “Negotiations will cover a wide range of […] Read more

A joint statement from the Ontario and Quebec provincial governments, urging a shift in the federal negotiating strategy at the World Trade Organization’s talks on ag trade, has drawn concern from an exporters’ industry group. The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) is concerned over the “apparently complete focus” on the interests of Canada’s five supply-managed […] Read more

A tax deduction for investments in co-operatives is on the Canadian Federation of Agriculture’s list of recommendations for Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s Feb. 26 budget. A co-operative investment plan, as proposed by the CFA, would give co-op members and workers a tax deduction if they choose to invest capital in the co-op. Such a plan […] Read more

Manitobans between ages 9 and 24 with an eye or ear for presentation and a germ of an agriculture-related idea can put their skills to the test in a new Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) contest with the help of the Manitoba Co-operator. The “Share What You See in Agriculture” media competition will accept projects from […] Read more

The much-anticipated report from a provincial commission on the future of agriculture and agri-food in Quebec finds a sector so closed in by its regulations, systems and structures that “they are in danger of literally suffocating it.” The report from the Commission sur l’avenir de l’agriculture et de l’agroalimentaire quebecois, released Tuesday, generally recommends that […] Read more

Record gains in Canada’s crops sector are expected to boost the overall income of Canadian farmers in 2007 and again in 2008, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada forecasts. AAFC, the provinces and Statistics Canada on Friday released their farm income forecast for 2007 and 2008, pointing to a substantial increase in income from crops. But rising […] Read more

A new World Trade Organization draft text, laying out what WTO member countries might be able to agree to in coming weeks on agricultural trade, shows progress on issues important for Canadian ag exports, according to Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. The WTO’s agriculture negotiations chairman, Crawford Falconer, and its non-ag market access chairperson, Don Stephenson, […] Read more

A mixed farmer from Quebec and an Ontario farm financial planner are the newest appointees to the board of Farm Credit Canada. Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz on Monday named Caroline Belzile of Saint-Elzéar, Que., to a three-year term effective immediately. Belzile has co-owned a beef, hog and grain farm and sugar bush in the […] Read more

Statistics Canada’s farm product price index (FPPI) for November 2007 rose from the same month in 2006 on the back of escalating crop prices, the agency reported Wednesday. The statistician’s preliminary numbers for November 2007 point to a 3.7 per cent rise in the overall FPPI compared to November 2006, but a 2.6 per cent […] Read more